NEIGHBORS !
╰┈➤ 11. LAX
irl
"They said yes."
The four of them had piled onto the couch for the morning, Sundays were usually a drag anyway. But once Elena announced vaguely that her parents agreed to her going to Boston for the holidays, Nick looked up from scrolling on TikTok and perked up a bit, "wait, seriously?"
"Yeah! I was right, my parents are gonna be busy and they just wanna see me sometime in January. I told them I'll see them the weekend after New Years. Perchance," Elena had her eyes trailed on the tv, she finally convinced them to start watching Desperate Housewives. In fact, when she turned it on, she was met with silence, rather than remarks and complaints. The corners of her mouth perked up in a smile, she was feeling like she won, to say the least.
"Oh, my god, yay!" Nick's voice went up in octaves from excitement and Elena was grinning, it wasn't often that Nick was one to show excitement.
"Right!" Elena turned to face her body towards Nick, "now I can meet your parents in person! Oh, my God, and Nate! This is so exciting. I'm so excited." She sighed, exhaling deeply.
"Do you even have any piece of clothing that could provide you with even an extra degree of warmth? Like a thermal? Or do you only have hoodies and crewnecks?"
Elena arched an eyebrow, "that's not enough? I was just gonna layer."
Chris snorted and Elena whipped her head around to look at him, "sorry. Sorry for laughing. It's just... you're so LA," to which she rolls her eyes in response.
"You guys act like you don't live there. If anything, I can borrow clothes from you guys. Like, the bigger jackets and stuff. Since they're bigger, I can layer more," she shrugs and flips Chris off. Although they were close friends now, their rude banter continued. If someone was to ask Elena how she felt about it, she would say that she could live without it. If Chris was asked the same question, he would also say that it's something he could learn to live without. Both of them favored the moments where they were sweet to each other, but neither will admit that.
"I'll help you find stuff to pack later, I think we leave Wednesday. So, three days of packing you gotta do for two weeks of vacation," Nick clapped his hands together as he started to think of a strategy but began shaking his head, "honestly. Let's just go. Now. To your place. I need to see what if you should buy something before we leave."
"We don–"
"Clearly, we do," Nick interrupted Elena's clear attempt to stop him, "you two should start packing, too."
Chris and Matt turned their heads to look at their brother then at each other, "mmkay."
Nick waited at the door while Elena tried to find her house slipper under Nick's bed that was sadly kicked further under the bed frame as they all crowded and piled onto Nick;s bed. At the sound of Elena's descent down the stairs, he unlocked and opened the door and the two were out.
Matt kept his eyes on the TV, "are you actually gonna start packing? We just woke up."
As if it was evidence to prove Matt's statement, Chris starts to yawn which makes his brother chuckle.
"I mean. I might actually. I need to know what I need to wash before we leave. Speaking of which, where are my pajama pants? I'm missing, like, 4 pairs."
"Check my closet later."
"Mmkay."
With that, Chris gets up to head to his room, he turns on his light and his TV to play music. As Drake plays through his TV speakers, he starts to aimlessly move around his room. And at this point, he was obviously a seasoned traveler with his frequent visits back to his hometown as well as his tour experience– this wasn't new to him and he had come up with a checklist for each time he visits to make sure he has everything. As he goes through the motions, his mind starts to drift, the music no longer becoming a distraction but rather the background music to his thoughts.
What the everliving fuck did Roman mean that Chris hasn't realized he likes Elena?
Well, of course he likes Elena! They're friends! But he knew that's not what Roman meant, which confused him further. Did he really like her romantically? There's no way! He had disliked her for so long. But, as Chris begins to recall about his past resentment towards her, he really couldn't pinpoint why he kept up with it for so long.
The first night that they had ever met, Chris was in a shit mood, he can admit that. Him and Matt were running duos, as he so kindly told her, and it was like every time Chris would go out of his way to reboot Matt, he would die a good 30 seconds later. He was frustrated to say the least, because was Matt playing blindfolded or something? The frustration got to him, and in the middle of shooting someone who had been trying to kill his character, that's when he hears the sound of a fist colliding with their front door.
First of all, who the fuck is that? Second of all, there's no fucking way Matt died again, no way in hell. Third of all, who the fuck is still knocking?
So, when Elena was standing there in her matching pajama set, it set Chris off. How could someone look so good and cozy and comfortable and just... so good while it was the late hours of the night? It pissed him off, really. Especially because she wasn't even trying! She was wearing thick framed glasses with her hair tied in a bun, a cotton white pajama set (with long sleeves and pants) adorned her body. So knowing that she didn't try to look good but effortlessly looked so enticing, it pissed him off! Because he knew that he looked like he hadn't showered in days when he opened the door. So now, he was mad at Elena for knocking, then Matt for dying, and finally, he was mad at Elena for being so beautiful and he had not a single clue of what to do.
He was now walking into his closet as he recounted the whole year of their dislike for each other. He never meant to continue being rude, but from his point of view, Elena was the one who had chosen to continue it.
If only someone had spoken up sooner.
Chris was now folding his clothes as he tried to come up with an answer to another one of Roman's questions: why had he gotten jealous over Elena flirting with someone else, when Matt and Roman never felt that way?
He laughed at the memory of him trying to bullshit Roman, and it was a poor attempt. Very poor. But he did have a good point!
Now this posed yet another question for Chris: would Elena feel the same way he did if he was to blatantly flirt with another girl in front of her?
Did he really want to find out the answer? No, not really. The thought of flirting with another woman sends shivers down his spine. He loved to flirt, but he realized that some women took it a little too seriously. For Chris, it was a pastime– something he did for fun. But, it seemed that they thought that Chris was serious with the joking pet names he would call them, and then the slow but steady increase in text messages they would send to Chris would become more and more... unappealing to the man.
And what if Elena didn't even react at all? His ego would take a huge blow. Like, tremendous. So instead, Chris decides that maybe he feels something for Elena, maybe not. He was open to the possibility, because it didn't mean a relationship would have to brew from it. It could just be something that he is aware of, and hopefully it doesn't become something that overtakes him completely. So what? Maybe he did like her in an unfriendly way, but how could he be able to tell with his brothers around all the time? Maybe he could try to get to know her.
Good thing she was going to Boston.
He didn't even know it, but his check-in luggage was basically packed, except for the clothes he mindlessly threw on the floor to wash. All he had left was to pack that load and to pack his backpack and he was ready to go. He huffed out a breath and exhaled, pressing his hands to his hips. Three more days and they'd be in Boston.
The next three days flew by for all of them. The boys were busy prefilming a few more car videos, for their Sturniolo Christmas special and also for their regular schedule, and Elena was deep cleaning her house and shopping for more clothes and even travel-sized-everything. Despite her friends assuring her that Mary Lou would have everything anyone could ever need, she stuck to her guns and bought toiletries to avoid being such a leech to the family.
The night before the flight, they had In n Out for dinner as they sat around the dining table at the boys' house. Elena claimed that she would miss her home state and she even offered to pay for everyone if they granted her this one thing. Matt was behind the wheel and he was really the only one she needed to convince considering he was driving. Next thing she knew, the Kia was pulled into one of two of the split lanes (separated by the iconic red plastic chains) of the In n Out drive thru.
It was now 4:02AM the day of the flight. They agreed to meet in the triplets's driveway and Chris would be out there packing the trunk of the Uber (packing is his specialty, by the way. No one else knew why Chris thought this a necessary skill. He and everyone just knew that he prided himself on how well he can pack luggages into a trunk, no pun intended) at 5 in the morning sharp for their 7:50AM flight.
Elena was almost finished packing her carry-on backpack, she just needed to do her skincare and whatnot, and she would be proper packed. She turned on the shower, tucking her hair into a haircap as she stood there staring at whatever was in front of her. What was she staring at specifically, she couldn't tell you. She was completely zoned out. The poor girl was so lost, she really had no clue what could happen in these two weeks, but she was excited nonetheless.
Her parents never took her around the continental United States for vacations, opting to go to Hawai'i or tropical islands. Of course she was more than thankful to have parents that took her on vacations, let alone the extremely lavish and well pampered ones she had visited. But sometimes she wished her and her parents would have visited some place nice and simple and nearby, like Big Bear or Mammoth Lake. Or even a trip to the East Coast during the summer, she had family in Connecticut! After a few seconds of pondering, she now sees it would be silly for a small family of three to rent a large cabin. It was a first world problem of course, but a problem nonetheless.
Snapping herself out of the daze she was in, she got in and showered and dressed and finished her skincare. Checking her phone, it was 4:33AM now and she had a few minutes to finish packing her backpack before her extensive routine of making sure the house wouldn't burn down while she was gone and making sure that she had proof that she was in fact, a real person.
When everything was all said and done, it was 5:02AM and she was downstairs with her luggage behind her and knocking into her backpack as she finished locking up her house. She takes a final glance and sees an Uber XL (and she makes a mental note to bless Nick's Venmo with a light $50. It was the least she could do, since it was a fucking Uber XL) and she sees Chris shaking hands with their driver as he stepped out to help Chris pack. Of course, Chris tells him it's not a worry, thank you, he's got this, and the driver cleans the car for the group.
A few minutes later, Matt and Nick are outside with their luggage rolling behind them. Matt and Nick both have their hoodies pulled up with their AirPod Maxes placed over the hood. They climb into the car and Nick spots Elena and hugs her good morning.
Everyone is soon in the car and they begin their drive to LAX and after grabbing some carts, they unload the car and wave bye to their driver. Everything was a blur, traveling in groups is always so stressful.
Elena did not expect to become the second mom to the group when she agreed to join the trip. In addition to making sure that everyone had their IDs before the car peeled off their street and making sure that everyone's phones were fully charged, she was now in charge of her boarding pass as well as Chris's.
In fact, as soon as the boarding passes were distributed by the lady at the check-in counter, Chris glanced at it to make sure the information was correct, then handed it to Elena, who was busy stuffing hers into her own fanny pack. Yes, she found her lululemon one last minute and thought it was as good a time as ever to pull it out. Despite their many attempts for her to remove it and just store it in her backpack, but she refused.
"Oh, so now you think this belt bag is useful, huh?"
"Just because it's useful doesn't mean it's not hideous. Why did you even bring that?"
They continued walking in single file as they make their way through TSA, and Elena fishes his boarding pass out for him as well as grabbing her own.
"Um, I brought my Stiiizy, and my battery is in my backpack and I have two pods in here. As long as they're separated, they won't say anything. So, to keep it extra safe, I just bring both. It all works in the end," they keep walking, although it's not really walking. It's taking one step– stopping for a minute– then taking another step until their feet are no longer staggered.
"But don't worry! I'm not gonna smoke in your house or anything, I just think that's disrespectful."
"They wouldn't mind, but thank you for being considerate," he glances down at her and she looks up and meets his gaze, a shy smile gracing her features in addition to the pink hue that paints her cheeks as she blushes.
After a few more guests, they make their way with no worry or beeps or inspections, much to Chris's surprise. Currently, Nick and Elena were sitting at their designated gate, even making sure to save seats for the other two boys while they bought their overpriced snacks and drinks at the stop-n-shop near their gate. Scrolling on her phone, she took care of a few things. She checked her Canvas to make sure no professors were being cruel by assigning work, she added her boarding pass to her phone, and she texted Camila that they were now at the gate. She looked up from her phone and saw Chris with a plastic bag with the store's logo on it.
He moves her bag and sits in the space, removing his backpack before situating himself. There's a smoothness in the way Chris moves, like he's confident with every movement he makes, and every action is made with intention. It grabs Elena's attention and she can't help but stare at him as he fixes himself. Watching him as he pulls his headphones out of his backpack and putting it over his hood, mimicking his brothers. Watching as he fixes the shoulders and arms and overall fit of his hoodie, and how he adjusts his pants as he leans back in his seat trying to get comfortable for the remaining time they had at the gate.
For the second time that day, she has to snap herself out of another daze.
Matt returns a few minutes later and Nick and Elena do some shopping of their own. After grabbing some snacks and a drink, Elena heads back and sees people lining up at their gate. Right on time, she thinks to herself. As the boarding progressed, their row was now part of the group boarding the plane and the four of them checked their seats.
"Me and Matt are in the same row, I got window and he's in the middle. What about you guys?" Nick motioned his head toward them.
"Um, 5A," Elena read.
"Well, me and Elena are next to each other."
"How fun! Please be nice to each other for five hours. I don't want our pilot to make an emergency landing, thank you," Nick moved the headphone back into place as he lined up for the plane.
"You can be nice for five hours, right?" Elena teased.
"This is a 5 hour flight and it's 7 in the morning, I'll be asleep, Len," Chris joked back.
Elena rolled her eyes and leaned her weight on one leg. As she stood there, Chris leaned his head and laid it on Elena's shoulder as they waited for the speed of the line to pick up. Acting unfazed was already difficult for Elena, but to act like she didn't have warmth and butterflies swarming around in the pool of her belly?
Yeah. It was particularly difficult.
She was really happy to be going to Boston, really.
⋅•⋅⊰∙∘˗ˏˋ ˚₊‧꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚ ˎˊ˗∘∙⊱⋅•⋅.
EDITED :D (while half asleep)
📂 l1velaughluke says:
it's picking uPPPPPPPPP
oh! what are ur thoughts so far? if u care to let me know lol. thoughts on the slight chris pov? i wanna do it a lot more! so lmk how u guys liked it ☺️
and i just wanna say thank you again for all the love on this story! it's growin like a mf, like 32 votes????? thank u so much!!! i love u guys!!!!!
that's all i wanna say, i really hope u guys are getting excited for their time in BAWSSTONNNN!!! bc i'm excited. bc who doesn't love jealous chris and who doesn't love some nathan doe! and lastly, I WANNA SAY i'm gonna try to be consistent, and i've just been super motivated to continue their story bc it's been so fun to write!
mmkay. i think that's all for now.
votes and comments are always appreciated, ily all! thank you so much for all your support 🩵
xoxo MMMMWAHHHH